Method of producing metallic titanium or its alloys



Patented Apr. 14, 1925.

res

UNETED 5r SIMON JOSEPH-LUIBOWSKY, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY.

METHOD OF PRODUCING METALLIC TITANIUM OR ITS ALLOYS.

No Drawing.

To all 'egvhomz't may concern;

Be it known that I, SIMON J. LUBowsKY, a citizen of theUnited States, and a resident of Jersey City, in the county of Hudson and State of New Jersey, have invented a certain new and useful Method of Producing MetallicTitanium or Its Alloys; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

In my co-pendingapplication Serial No. 636,457, filed of evendate herewith, I stated that I had found that titanium oxide, preferably rutile, heated under certain conditions, viz, in a non-oxidizing atmosphere at a temperature from 800 C. to 1,000 C., is converted to a black or gray-black. material having the property of thermal and electri cal conductivity. I now find that these properties can be utilized and assist greatly in the reduction of these oxides to lower oxides or to the metal itself. Many experitanium oxide render it suitable for reduction by these methods; for instance, I have found it entirely practical to produce metallic titanium from-this converted titanium oxide by means of the well known aluminothermic reaction. In this work, I have proceeded as follows:

I have made a thermit by mixing ground,

converted titanium oxide with aluminum in.

the degree of fineness regularly used in thernut operations in the proportion of 100 Application filed May 3, 1928. Serial No. 686,458.

parts of oxide to parts of aluminum. I have placed this in a crucible in which the contentscould be highly heated, and after this heating, have applied the regular ignition powder to initiate the thermlt reaction.

formed with unconverted rutile and titanium dioxide proved unsuccessful.

It is-obvious that the proportions of oxide to aluminum may be varied considerably from those given above and that flux, as Well as accelerators, may be added to improve the efliciency of the production. It is further obvious that, if the proportion of aluminum used is increased, an alloy of the titanium with aluminum may be formed,

.and that by the addition of metals, oxides.

thermits or other substances, other desired alloys may be produced. It is further obvious that instead of carrying on this reaction in a crucible, the reaction may be produced in an electric furnace using either aluminum or one of the other reducing agents, the electric are being suflicient, ofcourse, to both preheat the material and 1n1 tiate the reaction.

\Vhat I claim is:

1. The'method of producing metallic titanium which comprises treating a grayblack oxide of titanium by the application of heat in the presence of metallic aluminum. r

2. The method of producing metallic titanium which comprises eflecting the alumino-thermic reaction between a gray-black oxide of titanium and metallic aluminum.

In testimony whereof I afiixmy signature.

SIMON JOSEPH LUBOWSKY. 

